Jazz fest sets up shop in Bay View

Over the past decade it seems as though half the East Side has moved down to Bay View, so perhaps its fitting that a neighborhood music festival is following suit.

After six concerts over three years, Milwaukee Jazz Vision is moving its "Eastside Jazzfest" to Tonic Tavern, the Highbury Pub, Club Garibaldi and Studio Lounge, as the Bay View Jazz Fest makes its debut during Bay View Gallery Night on Friday, June 6.

Each of the four venues will host multiple performances from 5 until 10 p.m.

"We're squishing it all into this one night," says event co-organizer, musician Jamie Breiwick, with a laugh.

Admission is free and a complete lineup is below.

"Milwaukee Jazz Vision had been thinking about a multi-venue format for a while," says Milwaukee Jazz Vision's Erica Davis. "Something that would feel more festival-like."

Milwaukee Jazz Vision is an association of musicians, teachers, students, listeners, music industry professionals and community leaders working to bolster the jazz scene in the city.

"We approached Jeff Redmon with Bay View Gallery Night with the idea of doing a jazz festival in Bay View and he was on board right away, and liked the idea of planning it on the same night as Gallery Night. That's been such a vibrant event from the beginning, and there was always music, but this will be more formalized."

The most recent Bay View Gallery Night event drew more than 10,000 people Davis says. She hopes combining the jazz festival with Gallery Night will enhance both.

"It would be nice to see even more people, but our main focus is to put local music and musicians in front of a bigger audience and to enhance an already great event."

Breiwick says Milwaukee Jazz Vision hopes the festival – modeled on New York's successful Winter Jazzfest – will become an annual event, "of course," he adds, "assuming this one is a success."

Talkbacks

Facebook Comments

Disclaimer: Please note that Facebook comments are posted through Facebook and cannot be approved, edited or declined by OnMilwaukee.com. The opinions expressed in Facebook comments do not necessarily reflect those of OnMilwaukee.com or its staff.

Related articles

Lindsay Garric chats with jazz pianist Andy Milne about his band Dapp Theory, the details of his Shatner collaboration, Milwaukee`s vegetarian culinary fare and more. Dapp Theory gigs at the Jazz Estate on Friday, March 27.

Justin Tarantino has worked at Tonic Tavern, 2335 S. Kinnickinnic Ave., for two years. He started helping out as a bar back and within a short period of time became a full-on bartender. He says he owes everything he knows about bartending to veteran bartender Paul "PK" Kennedy.

After a quarter of a century as Milwaukee music mainstays, Clamnation is coming to an end, bringing things to a grand close Friday night at the Nomad World Pub beginning at 9 p.m. There tends to be an assumption of the worst when band members go separate ways, but that`s far from the case here.

Artist / designer Jeff Redmond is a member of Made In Milwaukee, the co-founder of Bay View Gallery Night and, along with Josh Evert from the Fatty Acids, organizer of an upcoming art and music festival called Arte Para Todos, a benefit for Milwaukee school arts programs.